A camping trip
by CurrentWay
Summary: Joel and Ellie were just supposed to go on a simple camping trip... Rated M for later chapters
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! This story is inspired by one of my all time favorite movies. I'm also super excited to see how this story pans out. DISCLAIMER: This story is not in any way related to my other TLOU fiction. Just in case anyone got confused. OH BY THE WAY: Especially for my friend Melanie, to clear the air there is no JOELXELLIE. Enjoy! -CurrentWay**

"Oh come on, please Joel? " Ellie asked in a pleading, desperate voice.

"I don't know, Ellie," Joel replied in an unsure tone.

Ellie has been asking to go camping in the woods nearby Tommy's settlement for weeks now and Joel kept declining every single time. Joel was still hesitant of the area and didn't want to go out of the boundaries until he knows the surrounding areas were safe.

"Seriously. You and I never do these kinds of things."

"I just want to know if the forest is completely secure, Ellie," Joel said in a fatherly and stern voice. "I'll ask Tommy to go scouting tonight with a couple of his men and see if it's safe. Ellie looked down and sighed.

"Ugh. Fine."

* * *

The next day, Joel and Ellie set out to go camping. Tommy saw nothing wrong with the forest and there was a clearing about half a mile into it. On the way, Ellie told Joel some more of her stupid jokes that he now have come to love and at around 6:30 they settled down in the clearing.

"Wow. This is a nice place," Ellie said quietly. She looked to her left and saw a small river with a dam in it. There seemed to have been something behind the trees on the other side of the river but she couldn't quite see it so she didn't think anything of it.

She turned back and saw Joel looking around cautiously.

"I don't know," he said under his breath. Something still wasn't right. But, he looked at Ellie's bright eyes and it helped ease his mind. He put down some sleeping bags and started a small fire. Though he was still skeptical, maybe he was just being paranoid. Ellie seemed to be alright with it. She appeared to have been healing ever since the incidents of winter. She wasn't as distant, though sometimes she'd have her days where she wouldn't speak at all or have night terrors.

She seemed more lively and happy, especially when around Joel. She never had any parents and he's been without a daughter for so long. Ellie brought life back into Joel.

"Okay so, what do people usually do when they go camping?" Ellie asked as she lay down on her back.

Joel looked at her. "Well, normally people would roast marshmallows and hotdogs, set up tents, start a fire, and tell really dumb scary stories."

"Pshh. That's sounds lame," Ellie said.

He chuckled. "Yeah it was. But, it was fun if you were around the right people."

It was quiet for a while. Ellie turned on her side to face Joel.

"Joel, were you good at any sports?" He turned and looked at her. He was used to her odd, unusual, and curious questions that came up out of nowhere by now.

"Well, football and basketball were my favorite sports as a kid. I reckon I was pretty good at football. Probably still am," he said with his thick Texan accent.

Ellie let out a loud laugh. "Ha! Yeah right."

Joel scoffed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh nothing, nothing. I mean you're doing pretty well for an _older fellow,_" Ellie said and putting emphasis on 'older fellow'.

Joel smirked a cunning grin. "_Older fellow?_ Ellie, you know what we did when we played football?"

Ellie had a confused look on her face.

"To get the ball, we had to tackle!" Joel then swooped Ellie up in to his arms off the ground as she let out a playful squeal. He wrapped arms around her started to tickle her where she let out even more squeals of laughter.

"Oh my god you ASS!" she said trying to get out of Joel's teasing grip. He released her and sat back down on his sleeping bag. Ellie was still panting from all of the hard laughing and her face hurt from smiling so much.

"Well next time don't call me an old man," he retorted jokingly.

Ellie moved her sleeping back closer to his as Joel put out the dying fire. In that moment, Ellie completely forgot about her past. It didn't bother her anymore and it couldn't hurt her. She was so content and glad she chose to stay with Joel. Everything that went down with the Fireflies didn't seem to matter at this point. All this time he was trying to make her see that he needed her and, without her knowing until now, she needed him.

She laid on her side facing Joel and he put his arm around her as she was trying to go to sleep. She loved the familiar feel of him being around her. Safely protecting her from any harm. She buried her head into his neck and quickly fell asleep.

Joel heard stirring behind him. His eyes shot open in a groggy state. He half-turned to his left trying to find out where the noise was coming from. It was pitch black outside and he couldn't see a thing. His right arm was still around a sleeping Ellie. He let go of her and turned around for a split second to see where the noise was coming from when a pair of big hands grabbed him from behind and put him in a sleeper hold. Joel lifted up his large arms and grabbed his attacker's head causing the arms to release him. Joel shoved the guy in the other direction and then realized that there were about four other guys. Two of the guys grabbed Ellie. She woke up in a panicked state.

"Get off of me, asshole! Get off! Joel!" she screamed and tried to reach her pocketknife she always hid in her pocket. But, one of the men grabbed her hand and pulled out a pair of zip ties and zip tied her hands together. They gagged her and dragged her away.

"Ellie!" Joel got up and started to run when he was a hit by a blunt object and it all went black.

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING! I would like to thank my friend Meghan for inspiring this chapter! ILY so much! 333**


	2. Chapter 2

Joel awoke on the soft ground where he was when he was knocked unconcious. It took a couple seconds then realized what had happened. He jumped to his feet and then realized all of their stuff was gone. Weapons, food, everything.

_Goddamnit. I knew this was a bad idea, _Joel thought to himself.

Joel remembered telling Ellie about hunters and how when they capture you, they most likely will forget to search your pockets. He frantically started to search his own pockets but found nothing.

He began to look on the ground until a silver glint caught his eye. He walked over and found Ellie's trusty pocketknife on the ground.

_Guess they didn't check her, _he thought to himself. _I have to find her._

He walked toward the small river that was down the hill and near the clearing where he and Ellie had stayed. It took him about ten seconds to realize that a colossal building was towering over the river. Joel squinted and could see tall lights that surrounded the perimeter. To his right, he saw another small building that seemed to be leading into the large building. Shouting men's voices started to fill the air.

"Did you hear about our new shipment? They just caught this girl. She put up a hell of a fight. Heard Dylan's gonna take care of her," a man said as he was guarding the front doors with another man.

"Oh yeah, heard she was a nice slice," the other man responded.

Joel's blood started to heat up. He crept quietly on the outside of the perimeter.

"Yeah well after Dylan's had his fun then he'll probably just give us the leftovers. Selfish bastard."

_Goddamnit. How the hell do I distract these guys? There's no cover, _Joel thought.

As he got closer, he could see that there were two dimmed lights that lit up the doors to the entrance. Lucky for Joel, it was completely dark unless you were under the direct fluorescent lighting.

Joel looked down at the river and picked up a small rock. He threw it to the right where the forest was located.

"Hey did you hear something?" one of the men asked. The man walked in the direction where he heard the noise. Joel then threw another rock except a slightly bigger one. He kept luring the man into the shadow that the building casted on Joel that also kept him safe. The man didn't seem to have seen Joel pick up a big rock. Joel then jumped out of the shadow, took the man's head, slammed it against the wall, and smashed the large rock in one sudden movement onto the man's skull.

"Hey man, what's goin' on? Hello? Talk, man!" The other partner walked over to see where his buddy ran off to when Joel grabbed the man by the head, pushed him against the wall, and held the man up by the neck.

"So here's what's gonna happen," Joel growled in his deep, gruff voice. "You're gonna tell me where your men took that girl. I suggest you accommodate," he said as he pulled out Ellie's switchblade.

The man quivered and laughed nervously. "Ha. You fucking wish man."

Joel sunk the blade in the man's abdomen.

"You obviously didn't listen to me, so we're gonna go again. Where is the girl?"

"I ain't tellin' you shit, man."

Joel shook his head. He grabbed the man's neck harder. He then forced the blade into the man's eye socket.

"How about now, huh?" Joel threatened darkly.

The man opened his mouth to scream but Joel quickly shut it down by forcing his other hand that was holding the knife on the man's mouth.

"Now. _Tell me._"

The man let out a few agonizing whimpers. "Se-Se-Sector E. Dylan's keepin' her there to-t-to have some f-fun," the man spit out in small stutters.

Joel then let go of the man and let him fall to the ground. "Thank you. For your cooperation," Joel said darkly. He took the man's head and smashed his open mouth on Joel's knee causing teeth to fly in every direction. He snagged a pair of keys off of the guard's belt as well as a small pistol and ran to the front doors that led into the entrance. Joel walked into what apparently was a very small chamber that led into the main building. Joel shot the two uniforms that were inside the chamber and stole their guns. He opened the doors that headed to the main building. When he opened the doors, his eyes widened in shock and terror.


	3. Chapter 3

Joel looked around the enormous building. It wasn't some abandoned warehouse or prison like he thought; it was a water treatment facility. It was an absolutely huge facility. Joel didn't know what to do. He was standing in a big open space and he looked to his left and to his right and saw four large rooms, two on each side of the building. Joel ran to a wall that was near one of the rooms and looked at a map of the building. There were eight sectors total, four on each floor.

_Dammit. Where could she be? _Joel thought. He ran to Sector A and burst open the door.

"Ellie!" he screamed. But, he didn't see Ellie. He saw another young small girl. She looked to be only 12. She turned and gawked at him. She had sunken in eyes and had a piece of cloth in her mouth to keep her from communicating. She had barely any clothes on and was chained to the wall. Joel felt like he was going to be sick.

Suddenly, a large man shoved Joel to the ground and injected a serum into Joel causing him to go unconscious immediately.

* * *

Joel awoke in a very dimly lit room. The lights casted an eerie green light all around the room. It seemed more like a prison cell. He was still in a groggy state and tried to process where he was.

"Ugh. Ellie?" He asked not realizing that he was still in the treatment facility. Joel looked around the room then recognized that he was tied to a chair.

"Ellie!" he screamed louder.

The big metal door to the room opened and a tall, young man with dark hair walked in.

"Hello. You must be Joel, am I right? I'm Dylan," the man said in a calm voice.

Joel squinted his eyes. "How the hell do you know my name?"

Dylan laughed. "My men, uh, heard that little girl shout out your name when we were carryin' her away. We kinda figured you'd be comin' back for her. You don't have to worry 'bout her though. She'll be all taken care of," he smiled.

Joel made direct eye contact. "What the hell does that mean?"

"I mean she's in good hands. If you just leave now, she won't be any more trouble for you and _we _won't give you any more trouble. Sound good?"

Joel's face went extremely dark. "Fuck you," he growled.

Dylan's face fell. "Now, Joel. You don't want to do this. I suggest you just walk away. She'll be put to good use. Trust me."

A loud scream came from the second floor above them. It sounded like…

Joel looked at Dylan. "Let her go!"

To be honest, this was the first time in a long time that Joel had been scared. He's run out of ideas. How the hell was he going to rescue Ellie? He was fucking hopeless.

Dylan sighed. "All right. I guess we'll have to keep you here a little bit longer until we can figure out what to do with you," he said nonchalantly, giving up. He walked up to the metal door and slammed it shut.

Joel started to fidget in his chair. He was trying to see if he could undo the zip ties that they tied him up in. He then heard more screams coming from upstairs.

_Goddammit! _Joel thought. He reached in his back pocket and moved his hand around until he felt the cold metal of Ellie's pocketknife. After 30 seconds of trying to open the pocketknife, he heard even more screams coming from upstairs. Joel started to panic.

_I'm comin', Ellie. I'm comin'. _

Joel finally got the switchblade open and started to quickly saw through the zip ties until he broke free. He got up and searched around the room for more weapons he could use. Then, he heard more of the horrific screams from upstairs.

**Okay guys! This chapters was kinda hard for me to write, but it's going to be NOTHING compared to what happens next...**


	4. Chapter 4

Joel opened the large, heavy metal door that led to the rest of the building. He looked across the large room and saw a stairwell. He took down a couple of patrolling guards and stole their weapons as he headed for the staircase. He quickly skipped the steps but started to run up the steps when he heard Ellie's screams. Joel opened his mouth to yell back to her, but decided to keep his mouth shut in case of getting caught. He looked for the sector that he heard the screams from.

_If I remember correctly, it was Sector E. Where the hell is it?_

Joel ran to the end of the hall until he got to the cell. Joel shoved open the door to find where Ellie was, but then felt the butt of a large gun hit his head.

Joel, once again found himself locked in a cell, but this room was more humid and had a vulgar smell in it. Instead of being zip tied to a chair, Joel was chained to a wall. His arms had long and painful chains that burnished against his skin whenever he moved them. His head was still fuzzy but he remembered barging in the room to try to find Ellie. His head shot up and looked all around. She was nowhere to be seen.

_Goddammit! I was so fucking close. _

He looked to his left and saw a small, metal table that seemed to have medical supplies, pieces of cloth, and handcuffs all placed on top of it. Joel's heart started to pound. He struggled against the chains, trying to see if they had a weak spot.

_Shit. These chains aren't moving. _

He looked around the room. It had the same, unnerving green glow to it but this room was different. It had bloodstains all over the floor.

_Jesus Christ. This is a torture room._

He heard the metal door starting to open and he saw the one man that he completely loathed.

"Well, hello, Joel," Dylan said in his usual condescending voice. Joel didn't say a word.

"Joel, we really don't appreciate trouble, here. You're becoming a nuisance. Interrupting our sessions. That little youngster you've brought here, she's a feisty one. I'd bet you'd know something about that?"

Joel finally lifted his gaze from the ground and met Dylan's burning eyes.

"I ain't anything like you are. What the hell did you do to her?" he asked threateningly.

Dylan got up and slowly walked over to the metal table and grabbed a pair of pliers. He then walked back over to Joel and yanked his jaw open harshly. Dylan reached in a pulled out one of Joel's back molars. Joel screamed in misery.

"Fuck!"

Blood rapidly started to stream out of Joel's mouth. Dylan slapped Joel across the face, which caused Joel to scream louder even more.

"You won't speak unless you're spoken to. See 'round here we have rules. But, I'm willin' to cut you a deal. If you agree to leave without her, we'll let you go. She'll be out of your hands. You'll be free of her. But, if you fail to oblige, well, we'll give you quite a show."

Joel watched as Dylan walked to the other side of the room and away from the back wall to which Joel was chained. Joel's mouth ached immensely as he opened his mouth to ask a question.

"What the hell do you mean?" Joel asked in a half-angry and half-confused tone.

Dylan chuckled. "You'll see."

Joel relaxed his arms as Dylan left the room. Those two words echoed in his mind.

_You'll see._

He wasn't sure as to what Dylan meant by that, but he had some sort of idea. He just prayed it wasn't what he thought it was.

After what seemed like hours, Dylan opened the door. He walked over to Joel in (what Joel thought) was a sinisterly fashion.

"So, have you made up your mind yet?" he asked with a fake smile. Joel knew that this guy was full of shit, he could tell just by hearing him talk and watching him act. But, he didn't really know what this guy was capable of.

Joel squinted his eyes. "I'm not goin' anywhere without that little girl."

Dylan laughed. "Oh so you're kind of a, uh, on the move guy?"

Joel was so confused. "A what?"

Dylan shook his head. "Never mind. It'll all make sense in a little bit. That little slice of yours belongs to us now. Our property."

Joel shook at the word 'property'. "What the _hell_ are you gonna do to her?" he asked nervously.

"Hmm. You know what? Why don't we _show _you? I think you'll enjoy the little performance that we've decided to put on for you. Bring her in."

The heavy metal door creaked open. A large man brought in a small, frail, white figure by the right arm. Joel didn't recognize at first what it was. The figure seemed to be so skinny. Their shoulder blades stuck out it was so scrawny. Another man brought in the figure by it's left arm. Both of the men dropped the creature to the ground. It then turned around and looked up at Joel in his eyes.

"Ellie," Joel hardly managed to whisper.

Her eyes were sunken in so much that you could barely tell if they were even there any more. Her eyes were rimmed red from crying and had black circles under them. She also seemed to have a number of bruises all over her face. Her face was sad and dreary and also looked ashamed. Her wrists were red and irritated from what seemed to be handcuff marks. She was so fucking pale, Joel almost screamed. Her hair was out of its signature ponytail and was down to her shoulders all matted and tangled. She had endless cuts on her face and arms. She was stripped down to only her underwear and had a very thin shirt on that obviously wasn't hers. It was stained with blood. Joel then looked at the place he dreaded. On her inner thighs, there were bruises, cuts, and dried blood.

"Joel?!" she asked confused but also somewhat pleased. She got up and quickly ran over to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck. Joel gasped at how cold she was.

"Ellie? Baby, what happened?"

Just as about Ellie was going to answer, Dylan snatched Ellie's hair and pulled her to the other side of the room. Ellie yelped in pain.

"LET HER GO," Joel screamed.

Dylan didn't listen. He got a hold of a squirming Ellie and pinned her to floor. He got on top of her and looked Joel straight in the eye.

"Watch."

Joel moved back slightly. He wanted to look away but he couldn't. Goddammit.

Dylan kept pinning Ellie to the ground with his hands.

"Hey, hey. Shh. It's okay," Dylan cooed. Ellie froze in her place.

"No. No! Get off of me!" Ellie screamed in peril. "Get the fuck off of me!"

Dylan smacked her across the face to shut her up. Ellie looked over at Joel with a pleading look.

_Joel. I'm doing this for you, _Ellie thought.

Dylan wrapped his arms around to Ellie's back and ripped her shirt open from the back side. He was about to pull down her bottoms when he looked at Joel, who had his eyes closed.

"Ha. You're friend over here doesn't appreciate the show. I can change that, though."

Dylan got up off of Ellie and walked over to the metal table and picked up a scalpel. He walked over to Joel and jammed the scalpel into Joel's leg. He screeched in pain.

"Stop!" Ellie screamed. "Just fucking stop it!"

Dylan released the scalpel from Joel's leg and dropped on the floor. He looked back at Ellie.

"Look, just…you can have me. But, _please_, don't hurt him. Please," Ellie pleaded.

"Ellie-"

Dylan spun around.

"You heard what she said. We'll be having some fun, won't we?"

Joel struggled furiously against the chains. "No you motherfucker! Let her go! Let her go, goddamn you!"

Dylan knelt down and pulled out a small pocketknife. It looked like Ellie's.

Joel froze in his place.

Dylan pulled Ellie's head up so the light glowed on her fragile face. He put the knife to Ellie's neck.

"Watch or she will be punished."

Ellie whimpered as Dylan pinned her again on her back and worked on trying to get her small bottoms off. Ellie's mind started to race, trying to think of what to do. Then, an idea popped into her head. She looked straight at Joel. Right in his eyes. With her big green eyes. Joel became increasingly confused. It looked like she was about to give in. Joel noticed that Dylan had dropped Ellie's pocketknife and Ellie was eyeing it.

_Smart girl, _Joel thought.

Dylan was just about to pull off Ellie's shirt when Ellie reached for her pocketknife and slashed Dylan across the face. He fell back and screamed in pain. Ellie then lost control of her mind and started to kick him and beat him senseless. David flashed through her mind once, and she lost it once more. And this time, Joel wasn't there to take her into his arms. She burst into tears as she repeatedly kicked him in the groin, the stomach, and finally in the neck. She heard a loud crack and she knew he was gone. Her thin shirt had blood all over it. She looked almost exactly like she had before back in the winter only this time, she looked more broken. Destroyed. Devastated. Just as her innocence was slowly restoring, some asshole took it away. When was this cycle going to end?

Ellie walked over to Joel. She didn't say anything. She didn't do anything. She just stared at him with weary, sad eyes. They didn't have light in them anymore. Her personality was drained. It seemed like it was going to be gone forever. Joel looked at her. His arms were still chained to the wall, but the restriction wasn't with chains or handcuffs. Ellie was restricted of life and meaning it felt like. Everything just came down all at once. She fell to her knees and suppressed her head in Joel's broad chest. She didn't cry. She didn't whimper or speak. She just laid her head down on the only person that could protect her. The _only _human being with decency. The only person who _cared. _Joel didn't say anything either. He just placed his head on top of hers and comforted her with all of his might and strength. Ellie listened to his steady, familiar heartbeat. It always comforted her. So calming and relaxing. She sat there. Listening. Breathing silently. She was in such a state of shock that she couldn't cry anymore. But all she could do was just convene with the one person who cared about her.

After what seemed like hours, Ellie silently got up and got the keys that were in Dylan's back pocket. She unchained Joel and he got up and gave her a tight hug.

"I will never let this happen again, you hear me? I will always keep you in my protection. Never again will this happen," Joel said. Ellie, at this point was too drained and depleted to say anything. She doubted him but wanted to believe it.

Joel looked at Dylan. Abruptly, Joel dragged the dead body and chained him into the chains that Joel was in before. He took the scalpel and the pliers and stuck them in Dylan's eyes promptly in rage. Ellie let out a small cry.

"Joel? Can we please just get out of here? Please?" Her voice started to break.

He turned around and looked at her.

"Okay sweetie. Okay. We'll leave. Come on, baby. I gotcha." He took her hand and opened the door.

They managed to find the fire escape and they jumped out and landed on the hard gravel. Joel grabbed her hand again as they ran into the forest. They ran so fast they didn't even know where they were headed. They just wanted to get away from that goddamn place.

**This fucking chapter. This chapter was so difficult to write guys, you have no idea. I would love to thank my good friend, Ariel for the inspiration for this chapter! You are truly an amazing writer and I thank you so much bby! Please check my profile for updates on next chapters and new stories!**


	5. The Beachball

"Just a little bit further. I think there's a clearing around here. I'm not sure though. We'll keep lookin'," Joel said loudly.

He was a few steps ahead of Ellie, who was trudging along in the back. It was about 1 day and a half after the horrific event that managed to scar Ellie. It wasn't the first time, though, that's she's been scarred. And even before, back in the wintertime, it wasn't as traumatizing as this was. Joel didn't know the half of it. What Dylan did in front of him was just the beginning. Ellie thought to herself; debating if she should tell him the whole story or just ignore it. But, how could you ignore something so significant as this?

Joel looked ahead and saw a small shed-like structure in a tiny clearing in the woods.

"Ah, see over there? That's perfect. Whaddya say?" Joel asked in a light nature. Ellie didn't say anything. Her emerald eyes were fixed on the ground. Her face was emotionless as it has been for the past 36 hours.

"Ellie? Did you hear me? We're going over here and…" his voice trailed off. He looked at her facial expression and stopped walking. He didn't know what to say to make her feel better. What the hell was he supposed to say anyways?

Ellie lumbered over to the small shed. It had a light concrete floor inside and a worn mat on top of the concrete. She sat in the corner of the shed and laid her head on the wall. Joel sighed.

"Ellie. Ellie? Listen you're gonna have to talk soon-"

"Don't talk to me."

Joel was taken back by the harshness of her tone. He looked at her. "Ellie-"

"Don't. Talk," she replied in a monotone voice.

His hazel eyes moved slowly to the ground and let out a small, partially hurt breath. He decided to give her some time by herself and he left to go find some firewood.

Ellie rested her head against the wooden wall. A million things were going through her mind all at once. But her face still remained impassive.

_Is it even worth telling him what happened to me? I mean there's nothing he can do or say to make the pain go away, right?_

She closed her eyes. She remembered all of the events that happened a year ago. When she first met Joel and Tess. How Joel kind of freaked her out at first. She then realized that it's been a complete year since last fall. She remembered when she was at the ranch and she was heartbroken that he was going to leave her. How he made her feel unwanted. Unappreciated. Then, at the last minute, he changed his mind. He and she both realized that he does care for her on some level. She remembered the relief and gratitude she felt when he said he would stay and wouldn't give up on her. So, why the hell does it seem like she's giving up on him?

Ellie silently started to sob as she submerged her face into her arms. She was guilty for a lot of things, but the number one reason for her guilt was because she was making Joel feel the exact same way he made her feel at one point; undesirable. She perked her head back up and dried her eyes when she heard Joel walking towards the shed. She brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. She still wasn't in any proper clothing. Joel let her borrow his jacket but that was about it. At least that was something that was comforting. The jacket smelled like him, which seemed to soothe her mind a little. Joel walked into the shed with some firewood. He placed the firewood in an open space on the floor.

Ellie still had on that awful, thin shirt from the water treatment plant. She managed to cover up her back. That's the last thing she wanted him to see.

"Ellie. You're bleeding," Joel stated and motioned to her side.

"It's nothing," she murmured hastily and moved the jacket to cover it up some more.

"No, let me see it. We need to clean it." Joel reached his hand out to pull the jacket off of the small girl but she immediately swatted his hand away.

"Don't! Don't…don't touch me…"

Joel slowly backed his hand away from her. He started to become concerned. The blood got worse.

"Ellie. Ellie I'm being serious I need to clean this." He reached in his bag and got a bottle of alcohol and a rag. He cautiously moved over and gently pulled off the jacket. His mouth dropped open.

Her back didn't have just one, but several cuts all over. There had to have been at least 20. They seemed like whip marks. And others seemed like chain scratches.

"Jesus…"

Ellie hunched over her bent knees, hiding her face.

"Um, Ellie," he said in a very small voice. "This might sting a little bit so just hang in there, okay?" He poured a little alcohol on to a rag and tenderly moved them over the wounds. Ellie yelped out in pain.

"I know, I know…"

He moved the rag slowly over each cut, cleaning them slowly. Her exposed back was so bruised and bloodied—how did he not see this before?

After he finished, he put the rag and alcohol back in his bag and put the jacket back on Ellie.

"See that wasn't that bad, was it?"

Ellie didn't respond. Her face was lifeless. She blinked a couple times.

Joel got desperate and utterly worried.

"Ellie? Ellie, please, _please, _I beg of you, just talk to me? Tell me what happened."

Still no answer.

"Ellie, listen. You didn't even have to speak. Just…just smile. That's all you have to do. Just please smile. Please…"

He looked at her straight in the eyes.

"Your smile is the best part of my day. You have no idea what this means to me. Your smile could stop any war and cure any disease, so please, for love of God, please, baby, smile?"

He started to forget and not even care about what he was saying.

Ellie didn't say or do anything. Her facial expression didn't change one bit. All she had were tears in her eyes.

* * *

Hours. That's how long it's been. Not one of them speaking to each other. For hours. It seemed unnatural. Ellie still huddled up in Joel's jacket and Joel, warming his hands near the fire due to the brisk autumn air. Her appearance still depressed, just like before. She just stared and concentrated on the small fire. Joel studied her. He looked at how there was barely any light in her eyes. The hope just…gone. After endless attempts of trying to make things better, Joel just gave up. He lay back onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He watched how the flames' light danced and made shadows on the ceiling.

"You know. I don't think I've ever told anyone this before," Joel started. Ellie sighed.

_Great. He's telling me another useless story._

Joel recognized her exasperation and paused for a moment; then continued.

"It was right after the outbreak. The world was going into this mad chaotic whirlwind. I was just with Tommy at the time. We barely had anything with us. I mean, we were able to go back to the house for maybe a minute but we weren't able to grab anything valuable. But, I remembered grabbing something very important."

Ellie looked over at Joel, waiting for him to continue.

"You know, me and Sarah used to go to this beach every Saturday. It was probably one of the _worst _beaches I've ever been to but she loved it. And every time we went to the beach, Sarah would always blow up this beach ball. She absolutely adored that ball."

Joel stopped. He swallowed and sighed deeply. He started to speak in a softer voice.

"In that minute that me and Tommy were allowed to go back to the house to grab a couple of things, I secretly grabbed that beach ball. I carried it with me everywhere and it was small enough so it could fit in my bag. For me, that was the only thing I had left of her. Everything that I had that reminded me of her was broken and destroyed…except for that beach ball. I never let the air out of it because… it… still had her breath in it. I guess I couldn't let that go." Joel's voice was now nonexistent. He blinked back a few tears.

Ellie looked over at him. Her auburn hair was still all in her face so she couldn't see him very well, but she could tell by the way that he spoke that he was heart broken. How could she be so selfish? How dare she do this to him?

She slowly got up and walked over to him, taking her jacket off in the process. She lay down gently next to him. He wrapped his strong and safe arms around her, warming her at the same time. He placed his chin on top of her head. Ellie heard the familiar heartbeat that she loved. Her breathing was now even and calm. Her head rested on his toned chest.

"I love you," she muttered.

Joel's eyes shot open. She's _never _said that before. _Ever. _He was stunned. That was the very first time that she's ever done anything like that. He looked at her and saw that she was looking straight into his eyes. She meant it. He could see it. A small light had been restored in her eyes.

"I love you too, baby," he whispered into her ear. "I love you, too."

**This chapter (well, part of this chapter) was inspired by a scene from one of my favorite TV shows, CSI:NY. I loved the beach ball story and I thought it would be perfect in this story. Also, I'm doing something a little differ-if anyone has any requests on a new chapter whether it's fluff or emotional, I would love to publish it! Just privately inbox me on some ideas and I'll see if I can work something out. I already have some ideas for a next chapter but I want to keep this story going for as long as possible. As always, please check my profile for updates and thank you for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

**"The best laid schemes of mice and men**  
**Go often awry"**

**_Robert Burns, 1785_**

6 months. That's how long it's been. That's how long it's been since Ellie, once again, had her innocence taken away. Again. But, she slowly progressed back into her old self once again. She still cracks the same corny jokes that Joel secretly loved. She still laughs and talks just like she used to. But, still. Every so often she would wake up screaming; not talking to anyone the next day. Spending time with Joel seemed to have healed her, though. Before the failed camping trip back in the fall, Joel and Ellie lived in a very small house located just outside of Tommy's settlement. Ellie was always asking about going inside the settlement, but Joel wasn't quite ready to…meet new people. He just wanted to spend time with her. Alone. Without curious idiots wondering why a 48-year-old man is so goddamn protective of a 15-year-old girl. So, through the wintertime, Ellie and Joel stayed just outside of Tommy's settlement until they thought it was time move in.

The thing is, no one has actually seen Joel _or _Ellie. If one person saw Joel, the other would see Ellie and vice versa. As if those two haven't been inseparable enough. Especially since the whole incident that happened back in the fall. Ellie hated thinking about it. But, she knew she couldn't ignore it forever. Eventually, she would have to deal with it. But, she knew Joel would be there to comfort her. He always was.

"Ugh, Joel? How much further? My feet are killing me," Ellie complained as she was trailing behind the large man.

"Just down this little hill and we'll be there."

To get to the town, the duo had to cross through the water treatment plant. Joel remembered Tommy calling it 'for security purposes'.

The pair kept walking until they got to the steel doors that led into the plant. A guard appeared instantly at the lookout that was at the top of the gate.

"What's your business here?" he asked sternly.

"We need to talk to Tommy," Joel said.

"Who are you and why do you need to talk to him?" the guard persisted.

"Now take it easy, I'm his brother and I-"

The metal gates opened with a loud creaking sound. Tommy walked out with Maria by his side.

"It's okay. He's with me," Tommy ordered the guard.

Joel gave Tommy a very slight thankful look.

"It's about damn time, Joel. Let's show you guys the town."

It was about a 10 minute walk from the plant to the town and Ellie just wanted to drop dead at this point. The group arrived at another pair of gates but these were much larger than the last one. Tommy pulled out the walkie-talkie that he always carried with him and instructed orders to someone on the other end. Ellie started to become nervous. She hasn't been around large groups of people before. It's always been her and Joel.

Joel was equally anxious. He didn't know these people. He didn't want to be around these people.

"Hey uh, Tommy? Where are we gonna be stayin' exactly?"

Tommy chuckled. "Don't worry, Joel. We've got that all figured out. Just follow us and we'll show you where you'll be stayin'".

Joel and Ellie follow Tommy and Maria to another set of large metal doors. _Damn. Tommy has definitely got this security thing under control, _Joel thinks to himself. Tommy reaches into his pocket and grabs a pair of keys. He unlocks the steel gate and the doors make a very loud and noticeable screeching sound. Ellie gets closer to Joel, taking his hand into hers and clutching it roughly. She is so honest to God scared. Ellie hasn't ever been around other people. Well, like this. In a place where she would be living. Joel grasped her hand tightly as well and they walked into the town together.

It was massive. You saw many cabins lining the right and left side of the town and in the middle you saw a small lake. On the far end of the settlement, there looked to be a dining hall. There was also a movie projector screen on the left side of the dining hall.

Some people started to appear on their porches and looked curiously at Joel and Ellie. Joel immediately felt uncomfortable. Especially since he saw some pretty ugly glares at Ellie. He grit his teeth together. Some people shook their head in disappointment and disgust. Other looked shocked and somewhat scared. Joel's face turned into a scowl when he saw a couple men look at Ellie in a wrong way. Ellie could feel his muscles tighten. She looked up at him and knew that something was wrong. She didn't question though. The last thing she wanted was a scene. She gripped his hand even tighter than before which made Joel relax in a weird way. She was the only thing in this entire fucking world that could make him calm down.

Tommy started walking towards the very back of the town. There was a small but quaint little cottage in the very back. It was a dark forest green color. It kinda looked like a cabin. Ellie got a little excited.

"Is this where we'll be staying?!"

"Yeah. I reckon it's a good spot for you two."

Joel gave an appreciative nod. "Thanks Tommy."

More and more people started to file out of their houses. It didn't really look like they were going anywhere. They were just sort of…observing. Wondering how such an odd couple came to be.

Joel ushered Ellie inside. "Come on, Ellie."

The house was a pretty decent size. It kind of reminded Ellie of a smaller version of the house that she ran to when Joel was trying to give her away to Tommy. She shivered at that memory. Just thinking about the horrible past that she'd endured made her cringe. On her left, there was a large family room and towards the back of the house, there was a tiny kitchen. A large staircase was parallel to the front door and led to the upstairs. Joel seemed to be fine with the new surroundings, it was nothing new to him, but Ellie was, well, a little uncomfortable. She hasn't ever been in something like this. She's never had some place to call _home. _

"Why don't we go check the upstairs?" Joel asked.

Ellie, being pulled out of her thoughts, looked up at Joel. "Oh yeah, sure."

Joel raised an eyebrow. "You okay? You've been kinda quiet every since we got here."

Ellie forced a smile. "Yeah. Yeah trust me. I'm fine. Just a little…tired. That's all," she lied.

Joel started up the stairs and looked back at the small girl. She seemed bemused and dazed. Like she was in another world of her own. He started to get a little worried but hoped that it would just pass in the morning. If only he knew what was going on in that little girl's mind…

**Ahh I know! This chapter is kinda short and shitty but it was originally like 4,000 words or something crazy like that so I decided to split it into three. Ya know for the uhh, "emotional impact" if that's the correct term. So next part should be up by this weekend, hopefully. Again, please submit any ideas for new chapters! I would love to hear your thoughts! Thanks for reading!**


	7. Chapter 7

A few small rays of sunlight peeked through the window of Joel and Ellie's room. The duo still hasn't left their house for the past week that they have been there. Ellie has been unusually quiet and Joel has been taking notice. He assumed that it was some repressed emotions about what happened last year with Dylan. He didn't want to bother her about it. Still, it somehow started to get to him when she wouldn't make eye contact with him or wouldn't go near him for hours on end.

A loud bell started to ring in the distance. Breakfast. That goddamn bell always woke the two of them up early. Joel felt a small pair of hands grab his bicep and started shaking him awake.

"Joel. Joel! It's that bell again," Ellie whispered. "Should we go out and eat with everyone else now?"

He was still in a hazy state of mind but after a couple of seconds he sat up and looked out of the window. It took him a while to realize that Ellie spoke to him for the first time in a few days. First time she looked at him in the eyes and acknowledged him in what seemed like weeks. He wanted to relish this moment forever. He swung his legs over the bed and sat up, rubbing his tired eyes.

"You're up early," he mumbled.

Ellie giggled. "Yeah, well, I decided that I wanted to finally go eat with everyone today. For a change."

Joel's face quickly turned to a nervous expression. Was he really comfortable to go out with everyone else? It's been a least a week since they've even set foot outside of their cozy cabin. He looks at Ellie and at her small grin that she hasn't had in so long. Oh what the hell. If it made her happy.

"Alright. We'll go."

Ellie squinted her eyes as the early morning sun once again ascended into the sky. Her eyelids fluttered open and she looked around. Her mind then turned on and remembered her emotions. She very silently cried herself to sleep the night before and she didn't want to wake Joel and worry him. That's the _last _thing that she needed. She looked over at him, sleeping. His breaths were unsteady. It started to worry her. She's been miserable the past week or so, ever since they moved into the new settlement. Don't be mistaken; she is _extremely _excited about moving to a new place with Joel. Still. Something has been bothering her for a while. Tommy's settlement has brought back things…things that she didn't want to remember. Things that she still questioned even though these events hadn't taken place in over a year. But, seeing Joel sleeping like that, she decided to be little easier on him. She knew she'd been giving him a cold shoulder lately and couldn't give an explanation as to why. A loud bell rang in the distance. She knew what that meant. Breakfast. Maybe this was a chance to ask him. Ask him what she'd been planning on asking him for a very long time. She got up and walked over to him and reached her hand out and lightly shook Joel's arm.

"Joel. Joel! It's that bell again," she said. "Should we go out and eat with everyone else now?"

Joel and Ellie silently walked over to the dining hall. People started to file out of their house and abruptly stopped in their tracks when they spotted Ellie and Joel, a pair of strangers to them, walking around outside. Some just kept walking, pretending that they didn't see them and ignored it and others just stopped and stared. When Ellie caught a glimpse of their looks, she grabbed Joel's hand and looked down. They both walked into the dining hall and sat down at a small table in the corner near the doors.

After a couple of minutes, the entire small settlement filled inside. Barely any words were said. Granted, people were talking. But very quietly. All of them fucking staring at Joel and Ellie. Joel started shift uncomfortably and Ellie continued to stare at the table in front of them. Goddamnit. She should say something shouldn't she?

Joel noticeably realized that Ellie might've been trying to communicate with him. It's like every time he looks at her, she always looked like she was about to ask or say something, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. The look in her eyes looked as if she was pleading for help but her mouth weren't able to speak the words that her eyes seemed to be able to say.

A brave couple sat down on the opposite end of the man and girl. The woman was very pretty, had dark brown hair and blue eyes. The man was a bit taller and had a 3-day-shadow lining his jaw line.

"We haven't seen you two around here before. Are you new?" the woman finally asked after a long period of silence.

Joel slowly nodded his head yes. "Yeah," he replied gruffly. The woman flickered her eyes to her partner then back at Joel flirtatiously. Her partner seemed to catch the not-so-sly eye movements and clenched his fists under the table. Joel briefly looked at the man. By the way he sat, he seemed to be very pugnacious.

Ellie continued to sit quietly, pretending to focus on her thumbs and fingers.

"So, how long have you and your daughter been here? You guys look so alike. You have his eyes," the woman said, motioning to Ellie.

Ellie looked up at the woman. Her mind crossed the word _daughter_. "I'm not his daughter, exactly," Ellie said quietly.

The woman frowned. "Oh, so what, are you guys uncle and niece?"

Ellie shook her head no.

"So…you guys just live together and you aren't…_related_?" the woman said with slight disgust in her voice.

Joel knew exactly where this was going. "C'mon Ellie. Let's go get some food." He pulled the small girl up by her arm and led her to the food trays.

"Man, what was with them? Why were they prying into our life? Why the fuck do they care?" she whispered quietly.

"Ugh. I knew this was a bad idea. C'mon I wanna get the hell out of here before something else like that happens." Joel tries to lead Ellie with him, but she plants her feet in the ground.

"No, I want to at least get some food first. You agreed to go to breakfast with me so we're gonna eat." Ellie walked over to the serving trays and got a few pieces of fruit and a small biscuit.

"Well, I wasn't expectin' you two to be here."

Joel and Ellie looked up to the direction in which they heard the familiar voice. Tommy walked over and was in more dressed down clothing than usual.

"So, you guys finally decided to leave your house after, what, a week of stayin' here?"

"Good mornin' to you too, Tommy," Joel said sarcastically. Ellie smirked. Tommy chuckled. "Well, enjoy the food. I suggest you come out to the town meeting tonight. I've got a bit of surprise."

Ellie's eyes lit up. She looked eagerly over at Tommy and then at Joel.

Joel looked over at the zealous girl. He hasn't seen her excited in a while. Why the hell not? He smiled. "Then I guess my decision is all made up."

**Ah yes! Been a while hasn't it? Well hopefully I can update real soon so this can make more sense. More emotional trauma to come...**


	8. Fireworks

"So what exactly is this surprise that Tommy promised?" Ellie asked.

"Hell if I know. I just wanna get this over with." Joel replied.

Ellie's face fell. "Come on, Joel. You promised."

He shook his head. "No I promised I would go with you. I never said I would enjoy it."

Ellie elbowed him in the stomach. "Goddamnit Joel. When do we EVER have any time for fun anymore? This is the one night that things could be at least somewhat different." It was true. All they've done for the past 9 months was just be sad with each other and mope around due to the…events…that took place earlier. Neither one of them wanted to remember it. But, no matter how hard you try, you can't escape your past.

It'd be nice to see something new and exciting now. Besides, they're safe, right? Tommy's settlement is the most secure residence on the west side of the country for all they knew.

After a couple minutes of long thinking, Joel reluctantly sighed and said "Okay. We'll go."

Ellie beamed and grabbed Joel's hand. Damn, he loved seeing her happy. "Come on! I don't wanna miss it."

The two walked down the steps and onto the path that lined town. By now, the duo had gotten used to all of the odd stares and weird looks that the others had given them. The both of them knew that as long as they were with each other, nothing could break them apart. No one could touch them.

Ellie had Joel's enormous hand in hers as she slightly dragged him along, eager to see what awaited them.

"I heard she's not even his real daughter," she heard one person whisper. More and more residents started to quietly whisper amongst themselves, trying to decipher how the odd pair became to be. Ellie got a little irritated but she kept on walking with Joel.

I'm not going to have a couple of assholes ruin my night, Ellie thought to herself.

Ellie walked and walked until she found Tommy.

"Wow. You guys actually made it. Didn't think you two wanted to leave tonight," Tommy admitted.

Joel smiled slightly. "Well, this one over here thought it would be fun to go out tonight so I thought why not," he said motioning to the smaller girl. Tommy was absolutely amazed at how that girl could influence Joel so greatly. No matter what she said, Joel would comply. No matter what she did, Joel would follow. But, if any other person, hell, if Tommy wanted to get Joel to do anything that was out of his comfort zone, Joel wouldn't budge. But, he for some reason, agreed to do anything, ANYTHING for that little girl.

"What…exactly…is this surprise of yours, Tommy?" Joel asked.

Tommy returned his question with a smile. "Well, if I told you it wouldn't be a surprise now would it Joel?"

He smirked and looked down at Ellie. "Well, whatever it is, hurry it up. This one's getting a little impatient."

Ellie shot Joel a fake glare.

"Come on down this way. We need a big open space for it anyways."

Tommy led the two down a small hill. Then, as if it appeared out of nowhere, a huge open field came into their view. Was this here before? Neither Joel nor Ellie had seen it ever.

Joel looked down towards the middle of the large field, scanning the area. He spotted a group of people unboxing what looked like mini rockets from far away. Joel then raised an eyebrow and it all made sense. Tommy seemed to notice that Joel knew what the surprise and opened his mouth to speak, but Joel quickly shook his head no. Oh man, this was perfect. Ellie was gonna love this. Joel would finally get to see her smile for the first time in days and he didn't want to miss a second of it.

Joel suddenly became antsy and excited. "Come on, Ellie! Let's uh, go get a better seat." He started to pull her by her arm down the hill.

"Geez Joel! What's gotten into you?" she giggled.

"Nothin', nothin'. Just…I really think you're gonna like the surprise."

She looked at him with huge eyes and gasped. "You _know _what the surprise is!? And you didn't tell me!? I knew it!" she said and punched him as hard as she could in his arm. The hit didn't even faze the large man. And for the first time in one of those rare occurrences, Joel laughed. He fucking laughed. It was a loud and ecstatic laugh and Ellie was so full of giddiness and excitement and glee and joy and fuck she was so happy and eager. She hasn't felt like this in so long. In fact, she can't remember feeling anything like this. She couldn't remember being so on edge for something. Still, a burning question itched the back of her mind.

Should I ask him? Ask him the one question I promised I wouldn't but now the timing seems right but it doesn't and…fuck. It'll have to wait.

She wasn't messing up this one moment of bliss with the one person she cared for.

Joel found the perfect spot for a good view and promptly sat down. Ellie slowly followed.

He looked towards downhill. "Okay, okay. Ellie I want you to look straight up in the sky when I count to three, okay?" He pointed to the exact spot in the sky to where he wanted her to look.

She raised her eyebrow, confused as to why he was so fucking happy all of a sudden but also intrigued. "Uhh, okay…"

They heard a loud high-pitched noise emerge from the bottom of the hill and what seemed to be a small light fly into the sky.

"Okay, one, two, three."

And as if on command, a huge display of colors burst in every direction across the black canvas sky. Ellie's opened in pure awe as well as her mouth did. Beautiful. She's never seen anything like it. More and more colors surfaced and developed into the sky and Ellie's heartbeat picked up faster and faster. Joel looked at Ellie and smiled so fucking big. He couldn't believe his eyes. Someone who was broken and hurt so long ago was now having one of the best experiences of her life and he had the honor to be there to witness it. The colors illuminated the sky and lit up Ellie's face at the same time.

"What do you call these things again?" Ellie screamed over the loud booming sounds in the sky.

"Fireworks. We used to do them all the time when there was a special occasion." Joel then slowly grabbed Ellie and pulled her close to his chest and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She rested her head on his neck and felt like she was flying she was so fucking happy. She noticed that all of the townspeople were below them near the fireworks and that she and Joel were the only ones on top of the hill. And that's how she wanted it. Just him and her. More and more fireworks lit up the sky over and over again. For a while, they just sat there. Sat at the top of the hill with just each other. The fireworks started to dissipate and then four huge fireworks lit up the sky all of together to finalize the performance.

Ellie noticed something below them and saw people moving around strangely. What were they doing? Then she heard…oh my God. Music.

Ellie abruptly got up and looked down. "Joel. Joel! Come on! Let's go see what they're doing down there!"

More and more people moved around rhythmically to the upbeat music.  
"What are they doing down there?" Ellie remembered vaguely what it was, but she couldn't remember what it was called.

Joel smirked. "I'll show you. Come on, kiddo," he said while holding out his hand. The two quickly ran down the small hill and onto the large platform full of dancing people. A loud and upbeat song was playing.

_Are they laughing at or with me?_

_Oh baby those are such great shoes_

Joel takes Ellie by her hand and starts swinging and twirling her around with the beat of the music. She at first is confused but gave into his stupid but adorable moves.

_And I think that I'm so happy now_

_And I think that this is a better you._

_Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh_

_Are they laughing at or with me?_

Her face blushed a dark crimson but damn she was so happy moving to the upbeat and happy music. He twirls her and twirls her around and she doesn't even notice the people staring at their dumb dancing. More and more people started to dance around but it seemed like the music played for Joel and Ellie, at least for Ellie, it seemed like it did. She started clapping her hands and the music rose and rose and got louder and louder and felt like she was about to fall off the face of the earth because she had never felt so happy in her life.

_People are just tryin' to fit in_

_But is there something telling you_

_You can't trust anyone in this town_

_Aw, baby those are such great shoes_

_Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh_

When the song finished, Ellie did a huge fake bow that just about made Joel fall over from laughter. He grabbed her and pulled her into a huge hug that might've suffocated her. But she didn't care one bit. She was the happiest person on the entire fucking planet right now. When she was swinging and dancing like a huge idiot with Joel and she knew people looked at both of them but she didn't fucking care at all. It made her feel…human. Was this how it was before the entire world gone to shit? She didn't care. If every night in the settlement was going to be like this, then she didn't have one little problem with staying there. Not one.

**AHH YES. THIS CHAPTER WAS SO MUCH FUN TO WRITE OMG. I WAS PLANNING ON GETTING THIS UP BY WEDNESDAY AT THE EARLIEST BUT I JUST THOUGHT, FUCK IT. Oh my goodness. Yes it is pretty fluffy, but hey, who doesn't love some fluff here and there. :) The song that was playing was At or With Me by Jack Johnson so it'll help if you look up the song while you're reading the chapter. :3 don't worry, that emotional trauma I promised will be up next time. But until then, enjoy the sweet moments. 3**


	9. Chapter 9

**So this story is kind of...fluffy yet dramatic at the same time?.. If that makes sense. Idk, you'll just have to read it XD**

The platform of the small dancing area was full of couples dancing to a slower song and little kids quietly speaking. Most of them kept their distance from Joel and Ellie, but that wasn't really a shock to anyone.

Joel and Ellie were more on the outer parts of the group and were dancing slowly to the soft song playing.

_Have I found you?_

_Flightless Bird_

_Jealous, Weeping or lost you?_

_American Mouth_

_Big pill looming_

Ellie thought slow dancing was kind of lame, but in that moment—with the song and warm air and Joel slowly leading her in a swaying dance; it all seemed right. She rested her head on his stomach and oscillated with Joel's slow dance movements. She smiled to herself and felt like she was about to fall asleep due to how calm she was.

The itching question came back into her mind. She was desperately trying so hard to suppress it, get rid of it forever. She shed a single tear—one because she was happy and dancing with the one person who cares, but also because she knew it was going to come to an end soon. She'll ask the question. She has to. She'll get it over with and it'll never be brought up again. She's contemplated the fact that its most likely not even necessary to bring it up, but she needed an answer. She deserved that much, right?

The beautiful song ended and the crowd clapped and praised the musicians. Joel released Ellie; she looked down at the ground and furrowed her brow.

"Is something the matter?"

Ellie looked up. "No. Um, actually, yes," she tried desperately to spit out her words. She didn't know how to ask the question.

"Can we talk? There's something I've been meanin' to ask you."

Joel frowned. He didn't like the tone of her voice. "Uh, sure," he consented. Ellie grabbed him softly by the arm and led him all the way back up to the hill that the two were on earlier when watching the fireworks.

Ellie trying to mentally prepare herself to ask the question. What she was going to say, how she was going to say it, and so on. She took a deep breath. They both got to the top of the hill and then stopped.

"Well, what is it-"

"What happened with the Fireflies?" she blurted out all at once.

Joel blinked—stunned by the question that was out of nowhere and was something he didn't really want to answer.

"And I want you tell me truth. What _actually _happened."

Joel opened his mouth to protest and try to get her to just drop the subject, but her eyes looked straight into his hazel ones, full of determination and yet full of fear.

"Okay. You want the truth? Fine. There was no one else. They needed to open your brain up to extract the cure, but it would kill you in the process. They needed you to die and sacrifice your life to get it. I didn't want that to happen. I killed every last Firefly. Including Marlene." He ended his sentence firmly but somehow angry.

A small breath left Ellie's lips. No. No, he's still lying. That's not true. "You're still lying. No. No, I can't believe…" her voice trailed off.

"Ellie-"

"You, you _killed _her!? You fucking killed her!?" Ellie was raising her voice now. Joel was trying to calm her down.

"Ellie listen to me. I had to-"

"No you didn't have to _fucking kill her! _Oh my god. How…" her voice getting soft. Tear streamed down her face faster and faster.

"Ellie just listen to me," Joel said as he reached his hand out in an attempt to calm her down.

"NO don't. Don't you _fucking _touch me. I don't…I don't deserve this. I don't deserve _any _of this. And I sure as hell don't deserve _you." _She spat.

The harsh words felt like bullets—slicing through Joel over and over again. His breathing stopped. He watched Ellie run off. "Ellie. Ellie get back here!" he ordered. She ran into the forest that was behind them. He tried to run after her but she ran through an opening that was too small for him to enter through.

She ran. She ran as fast as she could. She didn't even know where she was headed. She jumped over broken branches. Tripped over fallen trees a few times. She didn't consider the fact that there could be infected or bandits or God knows what else in the forest. She didn't fucking care. All she wanted to do is get away from that man. The _one _goddamn person who was supposed to love. Care for her. The man whom she put her complete trust in. Now, it's all compromised. The words still echoed in her mind. _I killed Marlene. _The tears fell faster and faster. Her face stung with heat and pure anger.

She somehow found Joel and hers' cabin and ran into the house. She skipped up the steps as fast as she could.

_I have to do something. I can't let him do something like that to me again. I have to run. I have to run. Away from this place. Away from him. That fucking selfish animal. Who does he think he is? _

She got up to her room that she shared with Joel. She started pacing. Back and forth. Back and forth. By now, she's in hysterics. Hyperventilating. Tears and half screams resounded in the room. _I can't let him find me. I have to get the hell out of here. _

She ripped open the doors of the wardrobe that held her and Joel's backpacks. She didn't care now. She wasn't thinking. Not thinking about anything. She just wanted to leave. Escape. She'd find food on the way. She packed ammo and her switchblade and some clothing. She almost left the room when a small glistening light caught her eye. It was in Joel's backpack. His revolver.

Many ideas swam around her mind now. She recalls a conversation she had with Joel a long time ago. _The easy way out. _

She wasn't weak. On the contrary; she was strong. She'd been this strong enough on their journey. But, since the truth came out, and now that she knows that that piece of shit lied to her, that decision didn't seem too bad.

She slowly dropped her bag to the ground. She reaches into his bag and pulls out Joel's trusty revolver that he has carried with him so many times. Frantic tears stream down her red face again. She checked the chamber. One bullet.

"Lets make this count," she mutters in small, shuddering breathes.

She wasn't thinking. She wasn't caring or considering how this would affect Joel in any way. She was being selfish this time just has he been once before. She at this point didn't care. She just wanted it to be fucking over. Her eyes watering with more and more guilt-ridden and salty tears, she loads the gun and presses the cold chamber to her head. Her finger rests effortlessly over the trigger. Her finger just brushes the trigger when she heard someone burst into the room.

"Ellie what the hell are you doing?!" she heard Joel scream. She hated it. He seemed purely petrified.

"Don't you come any closer, Joel!" She kept the barrel of the gun close to her head, showing that she wasn't messing around.

"Ellie. Ellie, please, baby, listen to me. You can't do this. Please, trust me, this isn't how-"

"Trust you? _Trust you? _How the hell could you say that to me?!" she shouted. Their trust was nearly gone. Drained. Almost non-existent. She knew she couldn't live with him anymore. After he lied to her like that. It wasn't even the fact that he lied, its what he lied about. He kept something so horrible, so dreadful like that from her when she deserved to know the truth.

"Look, I know what I did was bad. I know that. But, you have to remember that Marlene said it was okay to _kill _you."

Ellie looked at Joel and without moving her eyes from his, slowly turned the gun on him. "You're lying. Stop with the lying Joel! Jesus, have you learned anything at _all?!"_

Joel's eyes opened wide and sadness crept over his face. He eyed the gun pointed at him by the one he loved. The one he loved as a daughter was now about to kill him. He thought of words to say to make her stop, but then an idea popped into his head. He slowly, very slowly, moved over to his backpack that was 3 feet away from Ellie. "You don't believe me? That's fine. You want to kill me?" -Ellie flinched at the word _kill- _"That's fine. But just let me show you something. He reached in his backpack and pulled out a tape recorder that he saved. He didn't really know why he saved it. He was actually planning on getting rid of it months ago but decided against it.

He turned it on and Marlene's voice filled the room. Ellie listened to the dead woman's voice.

"_We've got to kill the fucking kid…_

_So be it."_

Joel kept his eyes on the ground but flickered them to Ellie's face. Small tears once again started to fall. Her hand shook. She looked as if she was in complete shock. She was betrayed. Marlene didn't care. Joel was right. He always was. Ellie's breathing became short and choppy. She let out small breaths and let her knees drop to the floor, letting go of the gun in her hand.

"She, she wanted to kill…kill…" her voice trailed off.

Joel enveloped her in an embrace that made her weep softly. She was deceived. But she now in that very moment realized that Joel wasn't the horrible, dreadful man that she thought he was. The memories came crashing in over and over again.

Meeting Joel for the first time and not liking him. Seeing him heartbroken when Tess died. Because of her. Then traveling to Pittsburgh and she saving his life and in return earning his trust. Meeting Henry and Sam then both of them dying because of her. Joel in a near-death in the winter and meeting David. The memories kept crashing and crashing onto her over and over again. But, the past doesn't matter. It won't matter anymore.

She realized that Joel was an angel, a guardian, and a person who cared so fucking much about her that he risked their trust to save her and keep her safe, no matter what the cost was. Even though he killed, he killed to save a precious life. He was a selfish person, but the fact that he risked human kind's sake for a little girl proved that wrong. He couldn't make her love him, but he didn't need to make her. She already did. She cared for him just as much as he cared for her. She didn't want anything to stand between them. _Nothing _will ever break them apart.  
She didn't need to save the world anymore. She thought back to when she agreed to stay with him. When he swore to her, it hurt. She would admit, yeah, it fucking hurt. A lot. But he did it for her. He cared that much about her to destroy humanity for her. No one ever did something like that for her before. She knew she would have to face the consequences of their trust being conceded, but she didn't have anywhere else to go. So, why not stay with a man who she didn't know 9 months before and who taught her so much and then deeply cared for her. She didn't want to give it up.

"Joel?" she asked softly, still being rocked gently in Joel's arms.

"Hmm?" he replied softly.

"Why'd you do it? Why did you kill off and doom humanity for me? And, yes, I want the truth. I know that you're not good with speaking your feelings," she lightly chuckled which was an odd contrast considering the gloomy and morose circumstances.

He thought for a while and took a deep breath. "I did it because, even though I know you wouldn't be okay with it at all, you were the thing that I was fighting for. At first it was Sarah-" he cringed at her name, "then it was Tess who I was fighting for. And somehow along the way, you came along. I don't know how or when but I knew that you kept me going. I don't know what I would do if you ever left me. I know it was the selfish thing to do. But…sometimes…sometimes what's right isn't always the best thing, and what's best isn't always the right thing."

Ellie considered deeply and dwelled on his last words.

"And the cure was a dead end. I mean, who would we be saving? Murderers, thieves, cannibals, rapists—"

Her breath stopped briefly at the last word, but then eased her mind.

"To me, I asked myself, was it really worth it? Someone like you didn't deserve to die for awful human beings like them. And for human beings like me."

Ellie abruptly got up and turned to look at Joel. "Okay, now listen to me. Don't _ever_ think about yourself that way. You just did what you did to survive. Okay? I know what you did was pretty shitty, but you are…so…important to me. I don't think I'd be able to live either. Without you, I mean." Her cheeks blushed at the slightly cheesy statement.

Joel's eyes softened. He really did love this kid. Sarah would've loved her. But, he didn't need to think about her anymore. Ellie was the one he fought for now. He always would. She took his hand and walked over to the bed and lay down, patting her hand on the open side next to her.

Joel chuckled. "You sure you want me in here? I mean you seem pretty tired and—"

"Shut up and sleep."

He smirked and took a deep, defeated breath. He got onto the right side of the bed and Ellie immediately curled up next to him. He brought his arm around her shoulders and brought her closer to him and rested his chin on her head. He held her-the small girl's frame felt as if it was about to shatter in a million pieces in his massive arms. She was so fragile. He didn't want to ever let her go. Not ever.

She listened to his steady heartbeat that eased her mind like it always did. His warm body comforting her from the now colder spring-like air that infiltrated the room.

Soft music started to play in the far off distance near the platform in the center of the town where they were earlier. Joel recognized the tune and began to softly hum.

Ellie's ears began to perk up. Damn it, she'll have to talk to him later when she wasn't so exhausted about when he'll have to sing for her. She pretended to be asleep so she could continue to listen to his beautiful humming.

After a while, Joel actually started to softly sing the lyrics.

_I wish I could do better by because that's what you deserve_

_You sacrifice so much of your life in order for this to work_

_Please know that I'm yours to keep, my beautiful girl_

_When you cry a piece of my heart dies__  
__Knowing that I may have been the cause__  
__If you were to leave, fulfill someone else's dreams__  
__I think I might totally be lost_

He sang the words delicately and tenderly into her hair. She listened and shed one more tear for the night. But, this time, it was a tear of gratitude.

"Goodnight, my baby girl," he whispered and pressed his lips to her temple.

She smiled to herself and drifted off to sleep.

The world wasn't worth saving, but there were things in it that definitely were.

"What's done in the dark will be brought in the light"

Johnny Cash

**Well, there you have it. The really sad one. I'm just glad I didn't go with the actual suicide in the story. The songs used were Flightless Bird American Mouth by Iron and Wine and The Girl by City and Colours. They're both AMAZING songs and it definitely makes the story better. More to come soon. Maybe fluff :D Thank you so much!**


	10. Beauty Queen

"Alright now, Ellie. Listen to me. It's just a trim, okay? Nothin' too crazy, ya got that?"

"Joel, I got this," Ellie smirked and fit the small scissors into her equally tiny hands. She got up on the small step-stool to reach the back of Joel's neck.

"Don't make me look stupid," Joel mumbled in his gritty, Texan accent.

"You don't need me to make you look stupid," Ellie retorted in a sarcastic, teasing tone. Joel reached behind him, grabbing the small girl, tickling her. Playful squeals of laughter filled the room. She quickly stepped down off of the stool so she wouldn't fall.

"Look, if you want me to do this, you're gonna have to stop movin'! I don't wanna accidently cut you."

Joel huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Fine, just…be careful," he mumbled.

"Joel, it's okay. I'll be careful," Ellie said and stepped back up onto the chair. She took the ends of his thick, salt and pepper hair into her fingers and started to snip away.

"So, people would get these haircuts back then?"

"They sure would."

"Man, that's so odd," Ellie stated as she continued to cut at Joel's hair.

Joel laughed slightly. "How so?"

"Well, why get a haircut? I don't see how it actually matters. Its just hair."

He pursed his lips. "True, but back then everybody cared about their looks. They even used to dye their hair different colors."

Ellie made a face. "What? Are you serious?" she sighed. "Wow. Your time was definitely something different." She moved to the front and snipped at the ends of Joel's hair near his face. He brought his eyes to her face and studied her. He felt a pang of guilt in his side. He felt remorseful. He knew that she would never have a normal childhood—it's what she deserved.

"Alright. I think you're done." Ellie held up a piece of a broken mirror and handed it to Joel. "Sorry I couldn't find an actual mirror."

He studied himself in the broken shard. "You know, you actually did pretty good for not knowin' what you were doin'."

Ellie playfully shoved him back in response. "Shut up. Let's get something to eat. I'm fucking starving."

* * *

After the two of them ate dinner, they both got settled for bed. Joel was in the bathroom trimming his beard and looked out of cracked door. He saw Ellie sitting on the bed, fiddling with her thumbs and seemed to be in deep thought about something. Dammit. He knew what it was about. Even though her hysterical near-mental breakdown was about a week ago, he knew she still thought about it. To break her train of thought, he walks over and sits on the bed next to her. She doesn't look up. Joel decided to use an old technique that he did with Sarah when she was distraught. He took out her ponytail and started to gently braid her hair. She lifts her head up and slightly turns to look at Joel out of the corners of her eyes.

"What're you doing?" she asked.

"What does it look like? I'm braidin' your hair."

Ellie sat in the silence and smiled. After a while she asked, "Did you used to do this with Sarah?" in a small whisper.

He was quiet. Still talking about her hurt but not as a bad. "Yeah actually, I did. When her hair was longer as a kid, I used to do this when she was upset. She taught me how even though I was horrible at it," he chuckled.

Ellie knew it was difficult for him to talk about her. Fuck, why did she bring her up? Was she a horrible person? She started twisting and fiddling with her thumbs even more.

"And that's why I'm doin' this. I know something's botherin' you," he said as he continued to delicately intertwine the small pieces of hair.

Ellie smiled slightly. Damn, he was pretty good at this. That, or she was bad at hiding her emotions. "I don't know, it's just…what happened last week—"

"Ellie. Listen to me; you know you shouldn't worry about that anymore. It's in the past and that's where it belongs."

She opened her mouth to argue, but sighed. Deep down, she knew he was right. Why does it even matter anymore? You move on and accept things for how they are.

"Well, there ya go. Whaddya think?" He moved her hair down to her shoulder so could see. She turned and looked at the precise braid.

"Woah! You're pretty good at this. Thank you." She brought he arms around his neck and hugged him tight. She closed her eyes and smiled. She knew she was so damn lucky to have him. He brought his arms around her and held her tight.

"You're welcome, darlin'." He was so happy that he had her, too. She relieved him of so much sadness and stress of his past and was perpetually grateful. The two got settled for bed. They both slept soundly for the rest of the night.

**Well there's the fluff! Sorry if it's a little short. I've never done fluff before so here's my attempt at it. :) Also, I apologize that it took SO damn long to get this chapter out. 2 weeks is pretty ridiculous. But, I do have some ideas for future chapters and feel free to send me some things that you would like to see! Please R&R, thank you all for reading and until next time!**

**-CurrentWay **


	11. Chapter 11

"A town meeting?" Ellie asked in disbelief.

"Yeah…" Joel muttered in response.

Ellie snorted. _A town meeting? Really?_ That was pretty pointless in her opinion. _What's the point of getting the entire town together?_

Ellie sighed and tried to protest. "Joel…we're not _actually _gonna go, right?"

"Ellie, Tommy wants us to go to it. And, I don't wanna have him harpin' me about it so we're going to it, got it?"

She looked down at her feet and sighed again; having run out of objections "Okay."

The two of walked down the steps of their cozy little house and strode along the gravel path. Ellie continued to kick the small rocks along the gravel path that led to the center of the town. Joel walks until he finds Tommy.

"Listen, how long is this thing gonna take? I don't wanna be out here for long. I think you can understand why..."

Tommy raises an eyebrow. "Just follow me, you'll be fine. We'll explain what's goin' on when we get there.

Ellie quietly walks beside Joel on their way to the town square where the meeting was being held. Though she was slightly intimidated by the people who still continued to watch Ellie and Joel as they walked, Ellie held her head higher, showing them that she wasn't afraid of them. There were far worse things to be afraid of then petty townspeople.

The three of them walked in silence until they saw the small town square, which was parallel to the tiny lake that was also in the middle of the town. Joel thought it would probably be best if they sat in the back of the large group of people; it would be ideal for them not to be noticed.

Tommy got up on the small platform and began to talk.

"Now we're gonna need more people guarding the perimeter down at the power plant. We've been dealin' with even more raids."

Joel listened somewhat carefully, but Ellie tuned it all out. She just wanted to get the hell out of there and go back home with Joel. She still didn't feel easy being around all of the new people, and especially the new kids. She's known the feeling of being in a new territory with other kids who don't take a liking of her.

She started picking at the grass that she was sitting on out of boredom until she looked up and saw someone looking at her and Joel.

_Who was that? Has she seen them before? They look sort of familiar..._

Her eyes widened when she recognized the couple. It was the two people she met at breakfast with Joel a couple weeks ago. The pretty woman and the angry man.

The woman looked over, smiled, and waved at Ellie. The man continued to be focusing on Tommy's words. The woman's eyes shifted to Joel and stared at him.

Ellie crinkled her nose at the woman.

_What the hell is her problem?_

After Tommy was finished speaking and the people started to disperse, Tommy made his way over to Joel.

"Hey, look. I need a favor. The power still continues to go out back at the plant and we need some people to work with the machines and all. I'm countin' on you to help me."

Joel let out an exasperated breath. "Tommy..."

"Look, I agreed to let you stay here and all you've been doin' is stayin' cooped up in you house with that girl of yours. Might as well make yourself somewhat useful 'round here."

Joel contemplated the option and sighed. "Fine. But I don't want anyone comin' in or out of our house, you understand?"

Tommy nodded is head in acknowledgement.

"I'll make sure no one gets into your house. But, don't you think Ellie should have some sort of supervision?"

Joel chuckled. "No, no she's perfectly capable of handling herself. I'll just have to explain things to her so she doesn't freak out."

Ellie saw Tommy walk up to Joel and started talking to him. She started towards Joel when someone tapped her shoulder. She turned and looked.

"Ellie, right?" It was the woman from the breakfast.

"Uh, yeah."

The woman smiled. "I'm Tanya. We've actually met before. I think it was-"

"At breakfast," Ellie finished her sentence. "Yeah, I remember."

The woman had bright eyes and smiled warmly. "That's right! Hey, do you think I could talk to your father-I mean, friend, for a little bit?"

Ellie didn't like the way she said the word _friend_, like in a patronizing tone. "Uh, sure but I think he's busy right now," she said motioning to Joel and Tommy having a conversation.

"Oh, okay, well, just tell him Tanya would like to speak with him, would ya sweetheart?"

"Um, sure."

She smiled back in return and winked. "Great, thanks hun."

The familiar man that she was always with walked over.

"Tanya, come on. Let's get out of here and go home."

The woman moved her gaze from Ellie and looked back at the man.

"Okay, John. I'll catch up with you." She looked back down at Ellie. "Don't forget!" she said in a cheery voice and winked again. She trotted of with John, walking in the opposite direction.

Ellie raised and eyebrow and scoffed.

_What the fuck is with her? Why the hell does she care about Joel at all?_

She saw Joel coming over to her.

"Hey, Joel. I gotta tell you something."

He brought his hand to the back of his head, the way he always did when he was about to give some bad news. He avoided eye contact with her and she noticed.

"Hey, is everything okay?"

"Um, Ellie. We gotta talk."

* * *

"So you're telling me you have to leave for half the day? Every day? What the fuck, Joel?" Ellie yelled. _What the fuck did he think he was doing?_ She didn't want to stay at home all alone. Granted, she was perfectly proficient of being on her own. She's proved that countless times in the past. But, being around all of these strangers made her uncomfortable. She sat down on her bed in the small room that they shared.

"Now, now Ellie its not _every _day. It's just when Tommy needs some help workin' the machines. Apparently they go out often and they don't have many adults to tend and repair them, so Tommy thought that I would be a good person for the job."

She rolled her eyes. "Joel, what if something happens to you-"

"Ellie, _nothing _is gonna happen to me, okay? Relax. I'm still alive after all this time, right?"

He did have a point. Still, the thought of losing him…

He could see the worry still evident in her face. He knelt down and forced her to look at him.

"Listen, I won't get into any trouble, okay? I just want to make sure _you _are safe. That's all that matters."

"Ugh, and you don't think _your _safety matters, either?" she retorted.

"No, that's not what I sai-"

"Look your safety matters just as much to me as my safety does to you, okay? So, it's even." Her facial expression told Joel that it was end of the discussion. He sighed in defeat.

"Alright, I promise to be careful."

"Yeah, well let's hope you don't go back on _this _promise," she muttered under her breath. Joel seemed to have heard the sly remark but didn't retaliate. It hit him hard; even though he knew she understood why he did it, that doesn't change the fact that it still hurts her.

Joel moved over to his bed to lie down when Ellie's voice perked up one last time for the night.

"Oh, um hey. I forgot to tell you somethin'. Do you remember that girl that we met a couple weeks back?"

Joel half-laughed. "You mind bein' a little bit more specific there, kiddo?"

Ellie blushingly smiled. "I mean, remember back when we had breakfast the first time we were here? And that couple sat across from us?"

He turned his head slightly towards her in recognition. "Oh, yeah. Yeah, I remember her. Why do ya ask?"

"Well, she came up to me today while you were talking to Tommy after the town meeting. She said she wanted to talk to, well, _you_." Her eyes finally lifted to meet Joel's gaze. His face turned to a very confused look.

"Me? Why the hell would she wanna talk to me?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "I dunno. But, it apparently seemed pretty important. I think she might have a crush on you," she said in a more serious tone than she wanted to.

Joel merely laughed. "Okay, Ellie. Goodnight."

Once again, she was at a loss when it came to argue with Joel. _Maybe soon he'll figure it out._

"Goodnight, Joel," she replied in a whisper.

**I'm so glad that I FINALLY got this up! It's been a pretty long hiatus but I am back! More to come soon! Thanks for reading!**


	12. Chapter 12

A loud bell once again rang in the distance. Breakfast. Ellie heard the bell and slowly got herself out of bed and walked over to Joel.

"Hey." she shook his arm. "Hey. It's time for breakfast," she whispered. Joel stirred and eventually opened his tired eyes.

"Dammit, girl. Don't you think we could've waited a little bit?" he said in a groggy state.

"Yeah, well if we waited any longer, I never would've gotten your ass up. Besides, I'm starving."

Ellie and Joel walked quietly on their way to the dining hall. Joel became a bit more relaxed around the other townspeople, but Ellie was still distant towards them. She didn't really know them that well and was pretty timid around them.

The two walked into the dining room and sat down in their usual spot near the door.

"I'll get the food," Joel offered unsteadily.

Her eyes scanned the room anxiously. "You sure?"

"Ellie…" he replied, slightly annoyed by her questions this early in the morning.

She sighed. "Fine. But don't take too long." He got up and slowly walked towards the mass of people serving food.

Ellie kept her eyes towards the front of room, her eyes drifting from one area to the next, hoping that she wouldn't spot that one specific person she had in mind.

"Oh, hi Ellie!" a very recognizable and bothersome voice perked up for right.

_God fucking dammit._

"Oh hi, Tanya."

Tanya was wearing a rather skimpy sleep-type outfit for Ellie's taste that made her crinkle her nose at.

"Hey, you haven't happened to see Joel anywhere have you?" she said with a visual false smile that made Ellie's skin crawl.

"Uhh, nope. Sorry. I haven't seen him anywhere," she fabricated.

Tanya frowned. "Hmm, that's odd. You guys are _always _together."

She shrugged back in response. "Well I don't know what else to tell you."

Tanya squinted her eyes and scowled. She lifted her gaze towards the serving area and seemed to have recognized someone that caught her attention. She left quickly without saying a word to Ellie.

"Bitch," Ellie mutters under her breath.

Joel was serving himself from hash browns and oatmeal when he heard a person approach him from behind and tap him on the shoulder.

"You're Joel, right?" a woman with dark hair and blue eyes. She seemed familiar…

"Uh, yeah."

"I'm Tanya." She smiled brightly and reached her hand out, asking for a handshake.

Joel raised an eyebrow and looked at her hand. She got the hint and awkwardly retracted her hand back down to her side.

"I, uh, think we've met before. A couple weeks back? It was at breakfast."

"Yeah, yeah I remember," Joel replied quietly. Goddamnit. He's terrible with women. How do you think his last relationship went?

"Oh! Well actually I meant to ask you something-"

"_There _you are, Joel!" a small voice called from behind. Ellie trotted to Joel's side immediately. "Man, I've been lookin' everywhere for you!" Ellie said with a big bright smile.

Joel's expression turned very confused. Tanya's face went slightly irritated. She looked straight at Ellie for a long time, then back at Joel.

"Come on, Joel! I'm fucking starving!" Ellie said in a somewhat proud fashion, keeping the smug smile on her face that she flashed briefly towards the woman.

Ellie pulled Joel harshly in the other direction until she was far away from Tanya.

"Joel?! What the hell?"

"What?" he whispered back.

She pouted. "You're not…you're not gonna be talkin' to her a lot, will you?"

He smirked. "Relax, Ellie. I don't have any intention's on talkin' to her, okay?"

She took in a deep breath. "Good. I don't like her."

Joel laughed. "Come on, Ellie. Let's get somethin' to eat."

* * *

"Joel? You gotta sec?" Tommy said. Joel turned around from the machine he was working on. He was sweating from working in the engine room for the generators at the power plant all afternoon. He took one of the small towels hanging on the wall and wiped his forehead.

"Um, I guess so. Make it quick. I ain't got all day."

Tommy pulled him to the side. "So, have you got any idea who this girl named Tanya is?"

Joel slightly rolled his tired eyes and nodded.

Tommy shook his head in understanding. "She's been takin' quite an interest in you. I think you should go for it. It would be good for you-"

"Tommy, please. I have work to do and I have to get back to Ellie in about an hour or two, I do not have time for your datin' advice-"

"Joel," Tommy cut him off sternly. "All I am sayin' is just give it a chance, okay? That's all I'm askin'. Talk to her. You might find out you like her."

"Tommy, what about Ellie? How do you think that will make her feel?"

"Joel, Tanya seems to _love _Ellie. She can't stop talking about her."

Joel sighed and knew that it was completely pointless to argue with his younger brother. "Fine. But, I ain't promising anything."

Ellie nervously fiddled with her thumbs, sat on the bed, got up, sat down, and then started pacing the floor.

_Where the hell was that asshole? I swear if he's talking to that Tanya girl…_

She kept walking around and around, checking the window in her small bedroom every once in a while. She wasn't really used to being away from Joel for this long. She heard the front door open from downstairs and instantaneously skipped down the steps; eager to meet the one person she's been anticipating to see all day.

"What took you so damn long?!" Ellie exclaimed loudly. She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck in a short but sweet hug.

"Ellie, I was only gone for a few hours."

She smiled cowardly and looked down at her feet. "I know, but, I was just worried that something was gonna happen-"

"Ellie. I'm fine. Look? See? I'm here."

Ellie breathed out slowly and nodded. Joel dropped his bag at the foot of the door and walked to the kitchen to start on some dinner.

"Oh Ellie. Tommy kept talkin' to me about that girl, Tanya. She's still sayin' she wants to meet with you sometime. Tommy thinks we could have her over for dinner tomorrow night."

Ellie's stomach dropped. "Oh. Uh, yeah. That sounds fine. I guess." Goddamnit. Ellie turned slowly and walked up the steps.

"Hey, Ellie wait. You okay? I'm fixing supper that'll be ready in a minute."

She turned and faced him, trying to hold back tears in her eyes. It wasn't jealousy. Just disappointment. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'll be down in a little bit."

She ran to her bedroom and sat down on her bed, nervously twisting her thumbs around again. Submersing her head in her pillow, tears of frustration and regret slowly fall down her cheek. She was going to make sure that woman didn't ruin their peaceful life that they've just now established. No one got in their way before, and it wasn't going to start now.

**Ahh yes! The chapter that was supposed to be up literally 3 weeks ago is up now :3**

**I super excited for the next couple of chapters. It's gonna get pretty intense. Thank you so much for ready and I hope you enjoy! :D**


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